Diamonds in the Rough
by brooklynturtle
Summary: The Skywalker legacy has only just begun, and if something isn't done to stop the Empire, that name will be wiped from the face of the galaxy. I warn you, this story will not end quickly, for it is an ongoing tale of the chosen ones...
1. Alright

**Author's Notes: Hello there! Welcome to my world. You will find it to be a dazzling place capable of unimaginable things. Well, they're not _really_ unimaginable, because you know, I imagined them. But, nonetheless, your mind will be boggled. I should probably give you a few warnings ahead of time. First off, the Force doesn't exist in this universe. Also, the Jedi Code allows marriage. What will probably freak you out the most, though, is how many new characters and places have been added and how many have been changed. I don't have time to explain any more, so I'll try to do that as I write. I recommend reading my profile because all of this will make a galaxy more of sense. And now, I bid you good reading. (BTW, it would be great if you could review. Constructive criticism, not negative comments, please!) Oh, and I own nothing.**

"_Father, I'll be perfectly fine. It's only for a few weeks. I love you." _

Those were the last words Qui-Gon heard his daughter say before she left on a trip to Alderaan. It had been nearly two months, and there was no sign of her. Her ship had barely made it off Coruscant.

"Master, I'm sure that wherever Elena is, she is perfectly alright." Qui-Gon's apprentice piped.

"Kenobi, you've been saying that for the past six weeks. If she was alright, she would've contacted us by now. Even if she wasn't alright. That's why I'm so worried, Obi-Wan"

"They didn't find her among the ship's ruins, so she must still be alive. Doesn't that give you even a minuscule amount hope?"

"Is it any better for her to have been taken by slavers?" By now, Qui-Gon was almost yelling at his apprentice, "We have scanned the Core and Mid-Rim planets for her. That leaves only Outer Rim, which in my opinion is a fate far worse than death! Oh, I'm sorry Obi-Wan, I didn't mean to scream at you."

"It's quite alright Master Qui, I understand exactly. But, try not to worry too much. As long as she is alive, there is hope." Little did they know how alright she really was.


	2. Animals

"_Father, I'll be perfectly fine. It's only for a few weeks. I love you."_

Those were the last words Elena had spoken since she left her father. That had been nearly three weeks ago, and now, she was on a Zygerrian slave ship bound for Tatooine.

_I should have listened to you father, I shouldn't have gone. If I could just see you and Obi-Wan once more. There's so much I didn't get to say. Now, I'm doomed to a life of slavery, to be bought and sold like an animal._

The moment they landed, she was taken to the trader's block and sold to a gladiatorial trainer. She had no time to process any of this before she was thrust onto a chain of slaves bound for the same destination. From the moment the pirates had boarded her ship, she felt as if she were in a dream, that none of it was real. It was like a horrible nightmare she couldn't wake from, and it kept getting worse. It was hot and dry, she'd had neither food nor drink in nearly forty-eight hours. With the twin suns beating down on her, she would be dead by nightfall.

She and the other slaves began their trek to their new "home". She was chained next to a young Togrutan, his lekku barely touching his shoulders and his montrals not quite two inches tall. He couldn't have been more than seven-years-old, not even old enough to really understand what was happening to him.

She knew what his life would be like, and he didn't need to start worrying any sooner than he had to. His fate was sealed, and the chances of him reaching adulthood were very slim. However, she didn't know what would happen to her. She knew why they would take males, but there were almost twice as many girls chained on the line. She decided it best not to think about that for too long.


	3. The Latest Developments

"Master! Where are you?"

"Guess." The occasional stupidity of his Padawan gets on his nerves.

"I just wanted to make sure of where you were." He walks into Elena's bedroom and sees Qui-Gon going through the holos of his daughter. "I thought I should let you know about the latest developments."

"What?" Qui-Gon looked up for a moment, but immediatley turned back to the holos.

"Before I tell, I need you to do something."

"What!" Before, he had been stupid, but now he was just plain old annoying!

"Give me your lightsaber, and promise not to break anything. That includes not breaking me in whole or part and especially not my beard."

"Really? You call that a beard? It's not even peach fuzz!"

"Really. And yes it is a beard! I have to shave more than once a month now!" Qui-Gon's face cracked into a wide grin.

"Fine. Here, take it. Oh, if you are that concerned, I should give you my knife also shouldn't I."

"Yes, that would be appreciated." He had the same nervous smile on his face since the moment he walked into the room.

"You are something else." he huffed.

"I learned from the best." he said with a mischevious grin.

"Alright, alright. What has happened?" The nervous smile suddenly returned to Obi-Wan's face.

"Well, definitite evidence has been found that...the ship was..was, uh...attacked...by a, uh Zygerrian slave ship DON'THURTTHEMESSENGER!" He held his arms in front of his face as if shield it from any blows that may have been given.

"Now why in the galaxy would I hurt the messenger?" His voice was almost _too _sweet.

"OW! Why'd you smack me upside my head? I thought you said you wouldn't hurt the messenger!"

"I never said I wouldn't hurt the messenger. I only asked _why_ I would hurt the messenger."

"You know, you've got a point there."

"Yes, I do. Now that we've got that settled, I suggest we begin making plans to track where the ship went."

"Great plan! Shall we proceed?"

"Yes, let's."


	4. Wandering

A few moments later, they arrived at the compound. The slaves were quickly divided by gender. A tall, female Balosar approached her and the other girls and took them to a large communal room. More than half of the room was a kitchen and the rest was filled with cots and blankets.

"Here we are. It's not much, but it's as close as you'll ever come to calling home while you're here. Breakfast is at six, dinner at seven except on tournament days. Then, it's immediately after all the matches end. Lunch is always at noon. I suggest you take the rest of the day to sleep. Work starts immediately after dinner. Oh, by the way, those of you who have never been to Tatooine, you will get dehydrated. We keep Bantha milk in the cooler. It takes some getting used to, but it's better than nothing."

Elena hurried to get a drink. She drank so quickly that she didn't even taste the sickly sweetness of the blue liquid. She wasn't nearly exhausted as she had been before she had re-hydrated herself, so instead of resting, she began to walk around so she could familiarize herself with the area. If it weren't for chance, this could have proven to be a fatal decision.

She wandered for what seemed to be hours, thinking and letting the past few weeks sink in. She still couldn't understand how it was that a slave ship could get so far into the Core without being noticed by the Jedi. As fa as she knew, they still didn't know. After all, it had been nearly three weeks since the attack, and there had been no sign of any efforts to come and find her. But, she put her faith in her father and his padawan to find her.

"Hello! What do we have here?" She looked up to a scar-faced Devaronian. Consumed in her thoughts, she hadn't realized she had wandered into an open training area. "Hey fellas, take a look at this! One of the shags got loose!" He felt a stinging pain on his left cheek.

"Don't you dare refer to me like that! I am daughter to Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn and Lady Kataryna of Alderaan."

"Oh I'm sorry, you prefer to be treated as a noble than as the slave. It just so happens I have a bone to pick with a certain noble. Too bad he isn't here, I guess I'll have to settle for you."

"No, you wouldn't."

"I wouldn't, would I? Jak! Rojad! I think I need to work on my target practice." An evil grin crossed his face as he watched her try to run. But, before she could get back indoors, she was dragged and stood up against a wall. The two gladiators held her to keep hr from moving as Devaronian unsheathed a long machete-like blade. He prepared to aim as Elena pleaded for him to reconsider. He was about to throw, when out of nowhere, an arrow grazed his wrist and caused him to lose hold on his knife.

The two who were holding her against the wall suddenly loosened their grip and ran out of the courtyard. Her tormentor as about to run, when a shadowy figure leapt down from who-knows-where and stood between him and the doorway. The Devaronian had only one thing to say.

"_Skywalker._"

**Sorry my chapters are so short. They WILL get longer. Please review!**


	5. First Impressions

**A/N: Sorry it took me so long to put up this chapter, translating English to Huttese is HARD! But, it was worth it. After the Huttese dialogue, the English translation is in parentheses. I don't own anything. Please R&R! Enjoy!**

For the rest of her life, Elena would remember those few moments of terror, and the feeling of relief and gratitude to the man before her. But, as she looked closer, she realized he couldn't have been any older than fourteen.

As he stepped from the shadows, she was able to see to see him more clearly. He was simply clad in cloth pants and Krayt dragon vest and boots. There was a broadsword at his side and a bow, quiver, and shield on his back. In his hand he held a long dagger. He was a hardened warrior, but his tanned skin and shaggy sand blond hair softened his appearance. But, she couldn't avert her gaze from his eyes. They were like no other. They were the most brilliant shade of blue-green she had ever seen. They were almost iridescent. And, as he approached the Devaronian, the green became ever brighter, until the blue was all but gone.

"Waki mallya kuna chu chu ateema, Wachi? Bun yo andoba shag che keepuna pachay! (What are you doing this time, Wachi? Using the other slaves for target practice again!)" His voice was raised and his eyes flashed with anger.

"Jee quy uba ma rimay! Jee kay nobata ruwasqa mikillapas! (I give you my word! I haven't done anything!)" he shrank back as the young gladiator approached him.

_Why is he afraid? This...Skywalker...isn't even half his age. He is a mere boy in comparison! Oh, I wish I could understand what they were saying!_

"Jee kay quy chuba _ashka_ yuyampay. Ichaka, rayku doe cheeka kaypi, (I have given you _too_ many warnings. But, because a lady is a present,)" he bowed his head slightly to Elena, and she in return, "Jee quy chuba _huk kutitawan_. Chone seechu chuba nobo chinkay bu tee tocky jee kay ruway yacha da ne kiriman cheekta, jee killee chuba heena bu dopa-maskey kung chay chuba kay! (I shall give you _one last chance. _And if you are not out of my sight by the time I have made sure no harm has come to her, I will kill you like the two-faced scum that you are!)"

"Pakmi nobata rasay manta, jee sulchay uba. (It won't happen again, I promise you.)" he said as he began to run away.

"Karunchay!(Now go!)"he roared. The young man turned face Elena, and his eyes returned to a deep blue color. "Ah'chu apenkee?" His voice was calm and he began to approach her. "Ma kichi zay, you don't speak Huttese, do you? What is your name?" She was nervous, but responded anyway.

"Elena Jinn. And yours?" He knelt down to help her up, and she welcomed the assistance. She had already been weakened by her long journey.

"Skywalker, Anakin Skywalker." She attempted to stand without support, but found it difficult. She felt the back of her head and found that it was bleeding slightly. She had hit it on the wall when she fell. "Come with me, we'll get that taken care of." She was a bit apprehensive, but had no one else to trust. So far he had proven himself, but doubt still lingered in her mind. "Unfortunately, the masters don't provide medical supplies for all slaves, only the gladiators if they are injured. If you don't want that to get infected, you are going to have to trust me."

"Alright." her response was barely began to follow him, but stumbled and fell to the ground, going unconscious. He lifted her into his arms and carried her through the halls to his quarters.

"I hope this isn't as serious as I think it is."

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	6. A New Apprentice

**A/N So now you get to meet the bad guys, or at least some of them. In case you get confused, Vader isn't Anakin. And Maaku is Sidious' new Apprentice. It may sound too soon, but it ill make sense later on. Please review! You know you want to. :D**

"You're planning again, aren't you Vader."

"Please, Lord Sidious. Allow me to look for them one last time." his voice pleaded to his Master.

"It has been nine years! Get over it!" he couldn't understand why his apprentice would still search for them.

"Please, I beg of you." he was on his knees.

"Even if they are alive, what makes you think they would want to see you?" for such an old man, his voice was menacing, "You left them, it is because of you that they are no longer. And you think that you could just go up to your son and say 'Hey kiddo, guess I just lost track of time.' Do you honestly believe that?"

"They were all I had. Please, let me look one last time. I will never ask again." his eyes were brimmed with tears. They were blue. Skywalker blue.

"Fine," he spat, "but if you ever even mention your pathetic family again, I will make you suffer a fate worse than death."

"Yes Master, thank you."

"Now leave me. And contact Aurra Sing, I have a job for her."

"Yes Master." he left the room cursing at himself for letting Sidious walk all over him. His family would have been ashamed of him. But not any longer would he let his Master treat him as such. The next time, he would kill him. He pulled out his holocomm and called the bounty hunter. "Lord Sidious wants you right away."

"Very well, Lord Vader, tell your Master he shall have to wait a little while. I have to finish up a job here on Balosar." she said with a forced smile on her face.

"I'll leave a message for him." He put the holocomm back in his pocket and after giving Sidious the message, went to his Starfighter and took off for the Coruscant underworld. If he needed information, that was where he could get it.

Aurra Sing arrived a few standard hours after Vader left the secret Death Star. But she wasn't alone. They approached Sidious, who was extremely irritated. His Apprentice was becoming increasingly difficult to control. With each passing year he would search harder and harder for his worthless family. It was time for a new Apprentice.

As the two figures stepped out of the shadows of the cooridor, he saw who was accompanying Sing. It was a human male; he couldn't have been any older than fourteen.

He was clothed in black ninja-style robes. He had two lightsabers which when joined together created a saberstaff. On his back was a rifle, in his belt an assortment of lightstars, and protruding from his boot was a minisaber. He was a hardened warrior, and his pale skin and jet black hair added to that. Sidious couldn't avert his gaze from the boy's eyes. They were like no other. There were a radiant shade of green and were filled with hate and anger. Yes, he would do. He certainly couldn't be any worse than Vader.

"Aurra Sing, it has been a long time."

"Not long enough." she growled. He always underpaid her, but she knew that when the Empire came to power he would be a powerful ally.

"Who is this?"

"He is a trained assassin from Tatooine. I bought him after my last job there."

"Very interesting." all he had to do now was get rid of Sing and he would have his new apprentice. And if Vader argued, he would just have him killed.

"What do you want? Lord Vader said you had a job for me." Her impatience was growing.

"Change of plans. I want him." until that moment the boy's eyes had been grounded to the floor. He glared up at Sidious.

"If you want him, you will have to buy him from me."

"So, he is a slave." this was working out better than he expected.

"Yes, now how much are you willing to pay me." she was very agitated.

"How about, nothing." he removed his saber from her chest almost as quickly as he put it there. He turned to the assassin, "You will now be called Darth Maaku. You are my Apprentice and you will take orders from me exclusively. Take care of her body, and then you will report back to me. Here is a holocomm. You will never speak of this day. You are dismissed."

How Maaku longed to kill the being that stood before him. But, he would wait. He would bide his time. After the Empire came to power, then he would kill him. Then he would be all powerful and could seek his revenge. And _no one_ would stop him.

**Cliff hanger! Mwahahaha! Please Review!**


	7. Bearable

**A/N If this gets confusing at any point in time, please let me know. I noticed a mistake in the continuity. So, I changed Jabba to Gardulla. If you think I should continue, please review! May the cupcake be with you.**

Anakin laid her down as carefully as possible onto his bed. The room was small and sparsely furnished. A window was just above and next to the bed, and a small table and chair across from it. There was a rack next to the door. He shed off all his weapons but the dagger. There were two other small rooms off to the side. One contained a fireplace and a small cooler. The other was a fresher. Compared to the sand floors of the rest of the apartment, it was state of the art. He walked over to a cabinet in there and retrieved Bacta and some large bandages to dress Elena's wounds. As he examined the gash on her head, he found that it wasn't a new wound at all. It was at least two weeks old. When she had fallen it had merely reopened. As he began to clean it she began to stir, although she didn't awaken. Her dreams had brought her back to that fateful day that she left Coruscant.

"_Goodbye Obi-Wan, don't forget, when I get back we have to finish our game."_

"_How could I forget? You won't stop reminding me how much you're winning!"_ _How she loved that smirk. She loved everything about him. Besides her father, he was the only one she felt that she could really open up to. He would a listen quietly to her, not interrupting until she was finished. He knew she needed a companion and when she needed to be alone. He knew how to make her laugh like no one else. The day he became her father's Padawan was a day marked special in her heart. _

"_Oh come now, I don't stoop so low as that." _

"_Yes you do." She looked up to the smiling face of her father._

"_So now you're siding with him, against your only daughter. For shame." They all were laughing together as she approached the ship bound for Alderaan._

"_Remember, don't talk to strangers."_

"_Father, I'm not a child anymore."_

"_That's why I'm so worried."_

"_Whatever you do, don't by any death sticks." Another smirk crossed his face._

"_Obi-Wan! I'm going to Alderaan, not Balosar." The smile that had been on her face, gradually disappeared as they became even closer to the ship. "I'm going to miss you all." she reached out to shake Obi-Wan's hand, but her father just barely pushed her and she fell into Obi's strong arms. The catch tuned to a warm embrace that they both wished would last forever..._

She awoke to a stinging pain in the back of her head. She reached back to feel it, but a hand caught before she could.

"I wouldn't suggest messing with anything back there." She stared up at the pair of sky blue eyes. Skywalker blue.

"Why are you doing this for me?" She sat up.

"Because you need help, and in this entire compound, most everyone would rather see you die than give up any of their 'precious' supplies to help."

"Then why are you different?"

"My father taught me to 'remove myself from the equation'." The blue in his eyes grew deeper.

"You sound like a Jedi, like my father." A smile crossed her face as she thought of her father and Obi-Wan.

"What is it like?" She was very confused by his question.

"What is what like?"

"Having a father." his voice was almost inaudible. She thought she saw a tear streak down his face,

"It's...it's wonderful. When, I was little, he would tell me stories before I went to bed, and he would always sing this silly song called "The Peter Panda Dance". I never understood why he did it."

"Because he loved you." He looked at her with eyes filled with longing and jealousy.

"I suppose so. What happened to yours?"

"I don't know. He…he was a smuggler for the Hutts, so we only saw him between runs. Whenever he owed credits to Gardulla…he would move our family somewhere else, before they could find us…so we wouldn't be…taken. But…one time…he…he didn't come back-"

"I'm so sorry. That's why you're here, isn't it." He nodded quickly, fighting back all the emotions he had held down for the past nine years.

"Enough about me, how did _you_ get here."

"I was going on a trip to Alderaan, but as soon as we were free of Coruscant's gravity, a Zygerrian slave ship attacked us. Ah!" She grimaced in pain.

"I told you not to touch it." Anakin scolded as he had her turn so he could readjust the bandage.

"That must be when I got this. I remember running out of my room to see what the noise was, when I saw that I was surrounded by three of the slavers. They had their whips, but they didn't activate them. They just walked towards me. I guess they thought they could trick me into going with them or something. My father gave me some basic lessons in self defense, so when they got close enough, I attacked them. I broke a mirror that was on the wall over one of their heads. After that I felt something hit the back of mine. I fell, and then I woke up chained to the wall of a ship."

"Unfortunately, that's an all too common story. Dinner should be ready soon, we should probably head down there. Get up slowly, now."

"I'm not exactly going to leap out the door."

"I figured as much, but better safe than sorry. Think you can walk on your own?"

"I think so." She took a few hesitant steps as he held his hands out to her in case she fell. She still couldn't understand how a 14 year old boy would be so concerned for her well being.

"You go on ahead, I have to grab a few things. Stay close to the wall. If you follow the hallway as far as you can the left, you'll end up in the dining hall. I'll catch up in a minute."

"Ok. Thank you, I don't know what I would've done without you."

"You're welcome, it's just what I do." She smiled and walked down the hall. When she had first arrived, she hated everything about the place. But she knew she had found a friend, nothing more and nothing less. He would make it bearable until her father came, if he came. She had to keep hope, though. She had to tell herself that they would. They _had_ to come, they couldn't _not_ come. She knew, they _would _come.

**A/N So, what do you think? Should I keep going? Is it worth it? Please review!**


	8. I Never Told You

**A/N So, here we get to take a little deeper look at Obi-Wan. I've never written a nightmare dream sequence, so let me know what you think of it. Thanks Fantastic Girl for your support! I don't own anything, and please review!**

He never told her. Although he wouldn't admit it, Obi-Wan loved Elena more than life itself. And her being taken by slavers hurt him more deeply than if he had been stabbed with a lightdagger. He kept face for Qui-Gon though. In a day or so, they would be leaving for the Outer Rim. It had been nearly seven weeks, so the likelihood of there being a trail to where she had been taken, was slim. Somebody might know where the ship went, but information isn't cheap out there, and Jedi don't exactly have what you would call an "abundance" of credits. They would probably have to end up bartering for the information, again. Sometimes they lost a ship, more than often their dignity. He just hoped his Master wouldn't make them play that awful game, I Never, to get information. The last time they had used it, he had woken up the next morning with a headache like he had never known before, the last time they had used it. But, if that's what it took to get Elena, he would do it a hundred times over.

He drifted into a restless slumber as his dreams took him back over two months.

_He caught her gently, pulling her into him. What lasted for a moment felt like an eternity. She turned her father and bid her farewells. She walked to the transport and turned to wave one last time before boarding the transport. The door began closing. _Something isn't right_ He ran toward the ship, but he felt as if his feet were made of lead, as if he could never get there fast enough. The ship melted away and Elena remained there, surrounded by Zygerrians. Their whips cracked, and the circle around her got smaller. 'Obi-Wan! Help me!' Suddenly, it was as if nothing would be able to stop him. He engaged the slavers until none were left. But, it was too late. Elena la on the ground with whip marks all across her body. He sat don cradled her head, calling for her to wake up, but she wouldn't. 'Please, wake up. Come on, we need to finish our game. We need to finish our game, Come on, wake up.' He felt something latch onto his wrists and he was dragged away from her. He screamed in defiance. He turned to see thousands of Zygerrians standing before him. He attacked them with the chains on his arms, but they had no effect. He could hear Qui-Gon's voice in the background. 'You didn't save her. It's because of YOU that she is dead.' It couldn't be. His own Master turned against him. Now, it was not only the slavers, but all the Jedi who turned to face him. Elena stood before them. He looked to her for assistance, but her scarred face showed no mercy. 'What have you done? I loved you and this is how you repay me! Kill him.'_

"Obi-Wan" he woke up in a cold sweat with his heart pounding, "Are you alright?" Qui-Gon stood above him with a concerned look on his face. "Don't worry, it was just a dream."

"Master, why are you in here?"

"You were screaming."

"Oh, that does tend to make one wake up."

"Yes, it usually does. It's almost morning; you might as well stay awake. After all, we leave in a few hours."

"Yes, we do."

"I'll leave you to finish your packing."

"Thank you, Master." as he got ready, his mind kept going over the dream. Was it really his fault? Could he have done anything to save her? No, he couldn't have. There was nothing he could have done, until now. He would find the slaver scum who took her. And she would no longer have to endure the hardships. He was coming, and nothing would keep him away from her any longer. Nothing would stop him from saying those three little words.


	9. Memories

**A/N I'm sorry it took me so long! This was going to be a two part chapter, but when I got to the second part, it was a lot shorter than I expected it to be. So, if you have read my story before, the last paragraph is "part 2". Please review!**

If there was one thing Elena didn't need to see, it was that Devaronian, Wachi. Thankfully, she didn't. She walked down the corridor, hugging the wall. She didn't want to risk falling again. It was cool, rough, and coarse. Graffiti and posters were scattered on the sandstone. Most were in Huttese, but there were a few in Basic. Many of them had the name "Krayt Slayer" written on them. She assumed it to be a pseudonym. Whoever it was, she hoped she would never meet them. Further along on the wall, there were multiple carvings into it. There would be an underlined name, and below it were tally marks. Some of them had a large X before and after the name. She could only guess what they were for. Just before she reached the dining hall, she saw the one for "Krayt Slayer". Theirs had at least a two score tally marks, but four score circles. She thought she understood what the tally marks meant, but the circles? She was extremely perplexed.

As she entered the dining area, the confused look was still on her face. There were two long tables running down the room. There were a few of the other slaves setting food on them, and she offered to help them. But, they wouldn't even make eye contact with her. So she sat down waiting for someone, anyone, to come. She didn't understand why Anakin hadn't come with her. Didn't he want to eat? He was so unusual to her. So extremely distant from everything, all locked up. She wouldn't make him answer all her questions, but she couldn't help but wonder.

He sank to the fresher floor and wept. He had been there for nine years. Nine long, lonely years. Until that moment, he had shoved that day from his memory. The day he lost his freedom. He focused on staying alive, and never dwelled on his family for long. Everything that happened that night came back to him in a flood of emotion.

_He remembered his mother telling him and his brother that some bad men were coming and they would have to be brave; and running around hiding their valuables, shutting down 3PO and shoving him in a closet. He could hear the pounding at the door and his mother pleading with the men not to take her sons away and her cries when they beat her. He remembered being dragged from under his bed and his brother's roar when he saw their mother's motionless body lying on the reddened sand. He could feel the cold metal of the shock collar around his neck and the burning trails of tears down his face. He screamed for his father to come and help him, but there was no answer, only the howling of his own voice in the merciless Tatooine night._

He reached into the cabinet above him and withdrew a small flask. He took a small swig and returned the bottle to its original position. Boga Noga was known for being an instantaneous pain killer and cheap engine fuel. He thought it would help him forget, but it only made him remember more.

_He sat, huddled in the corner of his small cell, waiting for a guard to bring him food. They would only give him just enough to survive, so he learned quickly to eat whatever they gave him and all of it. He heard the footsteps of a guard, but there was no food._

"_It's time to finish your processing."_

_He was half dragged, half carried to a small, brightly lit room. A Twilek healer stood behind an operating table with a microchip in one hand and a syringe in the other. He was set on the table and felt a sharp pain in his arm. Then, everything went black._

_He woke sometime later with an ache in his bandaged left forearm. He was disoriented, but knew he wasn't in his cell. He was now whipping boy for the royal Huttlets, and many of the scars he would receive in those four torturous years would stay with him for the rest of his life. The eldest of the royal sons, Jabba, seemed to enjoy watching him suffer and would misbehave just to see Anakin being whipped. There were many days when he would pass out before all the strokes were delivered, although he did his best to stay conscious. The punishments would only carry over to the next day. And then, it all became too much. He was about to receive thirty lashes because Jabba had insulted his tutor. Something in his brain snapped. All the anger that built up in his little nine-year-old body released them on the young Hutt. All Anakin could see was red. And he didn't stop until several sleep darts were shot into his back. And once again, everything went black._

Anakin could never decide whether that day was his salvation, or undoing. He wouldn't have lived much longer with the whip tearing at his back on a daily basis. But, now he was doomed to a life of fighting to the death. He didn't enjoy it. And that name they had given him, he hated it. All because of that stupid instinct of self preservation.

_He awoke in the middle of the night, tied between two stakes, in the middle of the dune sea. His fate was left to the desert, in typical Hutt fashion. If you didn't die from dehydration or heat stroke, the Tusken Raiders would take you. That is, of course, if the Krayt didn't find you first. Which they always did. He could hear slithering in the distance. He knew what was coming. Any Tatooine-born being with common sense knew to be inside before the second sun set. _

_He didn't know why he had attacked Jabba. He knew what would happen. Somehow, he almost welcomed the thought of death. To be released from all the sadness and pain in his heart. He waited for the end as the dragon came ever closer. But, then he thought of his father, his mother, and his brother. For all he knew, he was the last Skywalker in the universe. _

_His father would want him to fight, to be brave and to live. He took all his strength and focused on getting out of the bonds. The rope burned his wrists, and he winced in pain as they dug deeper, but he broke them. He didn't know someone was watching him. The Krayt was almost one click away; Anakin could hear its low growl. He looked for a weapon, and out of nowhere a small silver cylinder appeared. He walked toward it; he might be able to use it. He bent down to pick it up, but didn't see the hooded figure that hidden behind the crest of the dune. He turned to where he knew the Krayt dragon would be, only moments later. _

_He felt round the cylinder, to see if it did anything besides lie on the sand. He heard a snap hiss, and a brilliant green beam appeared. It was almost as long as he was tall. The dragon roared when it saw Anakin and charged. But, Anakin was ready. He held the saber as if he had been using it since the day he was born, which was almost true. The day he learned to walk was the day his father put a sword in his hand. By the time he was four, he was as good as the average swordsman. _

_The Krayt was almost upon him when he lunged and tried to maim the dragon, but the saber couldn't penetrate its thick hide. But there was one weakness, a fold at the base of the dragon's skull. The only trouble was getting to it. He fended of the numerous swipes of claws and attempts to swallow him whole. He was beginning to tire, but made one last attempt to kill the beast. He leaped over its jaws and did a hand spring onto the beast's back where he pushed the saber into it as far as it would go. _

_The hooded figure had watched all this silence, and now was awestruck at how such a young person could have such abilities. Anakin was exhausted, but he dismounted and began his long trek back to Mos Eisley. But, he had a problem. Can you guess? Well, you're right. Everything went black, again._

_The Jedi tried to help him, but it was all in vain. Once Gardulla found out about his abilities, he became her pawn in the gladiatorial ring. No one would believe a child, let alone a human, would be able to defeat even the least of the gladiators. So, she would bet all her money on him and triple it. For the first year, he would play in the private ring, bets were high and spectators few. They would be threatened not to spread news of the boy, and the gladiators were no problem. Who would admit they had fought a child and lost? And so began the next chapter of his life, as "Krayt Slayer" the Gladiator Extraordinaire. All because of that stupid instinct of self preservation._

**A/N I have absolutely no idea where to go from here. If you want an update, please make suggestions. I'm thinking maybe I'll go back to Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan for the next chapter. But, nonetheless, please make suggestions. And please, please, PLEASE REVIEW!**


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